McDonough School of Business
Finc-574 Option Positioning and Trading

Instructor: Jim Bodurtha	Office: Old North 313
Phone: 202 687-6351	Office Hours: M W  10:30am-noon and by appointment

Prerequisites:  A full semester of Financial Management, Finc 551 and 557. Besides this basic material, the student must have a good understanding of forwards, basic options, and probability concepts associated with expected values and measures of dispersion (standard deviation/volatility), as well as math-calculus.  Finc 556-10, Derivatives and Financial Markets Concepts (DFM) is highly recommended. Students will also benefit by having taken one or more of the corporate finance, investments, real option, and/or fixed income courses.

Description:  This course develops derivative-related financial understanding (forwards, swaps, futures, multiple types of options, hybrid securities), and their use in financial positioning, hedging, and trading.  A modeling perspective is emphasized.

Objectives:  To develop an integrated understanding of derivatives positioning, trading, hedging, and valuation.

To develop derivative-based solutions to investment and corporate financial management problems.

To address problems from the financial engineering perspective.

Required Notes: The first module will be distributed in class.  Subsequent modules are available on the MSB intranet as a hyperlink in the title of each section of in the course outline.
https://intranet.msb.edu/faculty/bodurthj/restricted/teaching/574_syllabus.htm

Required Text: You should buy any of the listed editions of the following book:

Hull, J., Options, Futures and Other Derivative Securities, 7^th edition, Upper Saddle River, N.J., Prentice Hall, 2008, ISBN 978013601586-4,
(or Hull, J., Options, Futures and Other Derivative Securities, 6^th edition, Upper Saddle River, N.J., Prentice Hall, 2006, ISBN 013149908-4,
or Hull, J., Options, Futures and Other Derivative Securities, 5^th edition, Englewood Cliffs, N.J., Prentice Hall, 2003, ISBN 013009056-5,
or Hull, J., Options, Futures and Other Derivative Securities, 4^th edition, Englewood Cliffs, N.J., Prentice Hall, 2000, ISBN 013022444-8.)

(If you prefer to purchase the book alone, the accompanying CD is not necessary.  Required class spreadsheet software is on the class web for download).

As the class-notes are in overhead form, you will need the text. The class note modules all have cross-references to the appropriate sections of the Hull book(s).  It is also recommended that you keep up with the financial press.  The FT-US and WSJ are good daily sources.  The Wall Street Journal provides discount student subscriptions on a quarterly or a semester basis (click to access) -- as does the FT for students. Weekly sources include The Economist, Barron's, Business Week, Fortune, and Forbes.

Calculation: The course will require a significant amount of calculation and/or computer spreadsheet work. Please always bring your financial calculator to class.

Grading: A series of 100 point quizzes and projects will be given every one or two weeks throughout the module and during the assigned final exam period.  The course final project is also due at or before our final exam session. The grade weight of the final project is equal to two in-module quizzes and projects (2 x 100 points).   In the final exam period, a quiz on your final project content will be given and will bequal to 1/2 of a regular quiz or project (1/4 of the final project.) 

As this course concerns derivatives, you earn two grading options by completing all quizzes and projects.  You will have the option to exclude one quiz or project from your final grade calculation.  Should you have an excused absence for a quiz or project, then you must complete the quiz or project as additional homework to apply the drop option to the associated quiz.  Additionally, you will have the option to redo one quiz question on each quiz to earn back half of the points lost on the question.  The options are inclusive, i.e. you have both options.

The grade equation is the following: 
=IF{F>0,[(SUM(Q)-MIN(Q))+F/2]/[N-1/2],[SUM(Q)-MIN(Q)/2]/[N-1/2]} 

In Excel, the formula is the following:
=IF(Z16>0,((SUM(P16:Y16)-MIN(P16:Y16))+Z16/2)/(COUNT(P16:Y16)-1/2),(SUM(P16:Y16)-MIN(P16:Y16)/2)/(COUNT(P16:Y16)-1/2))

Q = Quiz Grades (Excel Range P16:Y16 for student in worksheet row 16, etc.)
F = Final Session Grade = 1/2 regular quiz (Excel Cell Z16 for student in row 16, etc.)
N = Number of Quizzes

Grade Weights

Grading Curve

Class Grades will be curved in line with the suggested finance elective median of 3.5.

Quiz and project dates -
Our first quiz is during the second class period.  All other quizzes, projects, and the final exam session will be scheduled subsequently.

There will be no quiz make-ups.  If, for some reason - like snow, a quiz must be canceled for the entire class, then the next quiz will count as a double quiz.

Outline

1.  The Binomial Option Model

Options 7^th: 11, 19.1-19.5; optional 12, 17.6-17.8
Options 6^th: Chapter 11, 17.1-17.5; optional 12, 17.6-17.9
Options 5^th: Chapter 10, 18.1-18.5; optional 11, 18.6-18.9
Options 4^th: Chapter 9, 16.1-16.5; optional 10, 16.6-16.9
Optional: Cox-Rubinstein, Option Markets, 1985, Chapter 5
                Bodurtha-Courtadon, The Pricing of Currency Options, 1987.

2.  Option Positions, Strategies, and Hybrids

Options 6^th and 7^th: Chapters 9, 10
Options 5^th: Chapters 8, 9
Options 4^th: Chapters 7, 8
Optional: Structured Bond Products (+B-C, etc.)
                 Options 7^th: 294-296 566-567, 599-602,  647-648
                 Options 6th: 298-300, 520-523, 540-541, 614
                 Options 5th: 249-250, 445-456, 511
                 Options 4th: 253-254, 469-470, 533-534, 646-648
                 Cox-Rubinstein, Option Markets, 1985, Chapter 7.3
                 Bodurtha-Valnet, “Innovation in the International Money and Bond Markets: A Source of Lower Borrowing Costs?”, 1988.

3. Delta-Hedged Option Positions, Trading, and "The Greeks"

Options 7^th: Chapter 17
Options 6^th: Chapter 15
Options 5^th:  Chapter 14
Options 4^th:  Chapter 13
 
4. Modifying Standard Black-Scholes and Binomial Models

Options 7^th: 13.1, Chapter 18; optional Chapter 21
Options 6^th: 13.1, Chapter 16; optional Chapter 19
Options 5^th: 12.10-12.11, Chapter 15; optional Chapter 17
Options 4^th: 11.10-11.11, Chapter 17; optional Chapter 15

5.  Interest Rate Options and Risk Management (optional)

Options 7^th: Chapters 28 and 31, optional Chapters 22, 23, 29 and 30
Options 6^th: Chapters 26 and 29, optional Chapters 20, 21, 27 and 28
Options 5^th: Chapters 22 and 24, optional Chapter 23, 26 and 27
Options 4^th: Chapters 20 and 22, optional Chapter 21 and 23

6. Exotic Options and Simulation

Options 7^th: 19.6-7, Chapter 24
Options 6^th: 17.6-7, Chapter 22
Options 5^th:  Chapter 19
Options 4^th: Chapter 18

7. Multiple Risks and Correlation

Options 7^th: 21.6, 24.11-24.12, 26.6
Options 6^th: 19.6, 22.11-22.12, 24.6
Options 5^th: 18.6, 19.11-19.12, 20.8
Options 4^th: 16.6, 18.5

8.  Final Project Materials
Project topics are open at this point.  Three suggestions are the following:
1)  Actively manage an underlying exposure and derivative hedges over the module period
2)  Analyze the structure of a project, security or other financial position that has
     derivative components
3) Program an alternative variant of a derivative pricing and hedging model
WSJ and Web-based Information on futures and options markets

PostScript

Additional Suggested References -
Chance, D., An Introduction to Derivatives, New York, Dryden, 1998.
Cox, J. and M. Rubinstein, Options Markets, Englewood Cliffs, N.J., Prentice-Hall, 1985, ISBN 0136382053.
Figlewski, S., W. Silber and M. Subrahmanyam, Financial Options, : From Theory to Practice, Homewood, Illinois, Business One Irwin,
     1990, ISBN 1556232349.
Jarrow, R.A. and A. Rudd, Option Pricing, Homewood, Illinois, Dow Jones-Irwin, 1983, ISBN 0870943782.
Jarrow, R.A. and S. Turnbull, Derivative Securities, Cincinnati, Ohio, South-Western, 1996.
McDonald, Derivatives Markets, Boston, MA, Addison-Wesley Publishing, 2002, ISBN: 0201729601
Rubinstein, Mark, In-the-Money, http://www.in-the-money.com/body.htm, hard copy is Rubinstein on Derivatives, London,
     Risk Books, ISBN 1899332537.
Stoll, H. and R. Whaley, Futures and Options: Theory and Applications, Cincinnati, Ohio, South-Western, 1993, ISBN 0538801158.

Derivatives Used in Practice -
Bookstaber, R.M., Option Pricing and Investment Strategies, Chicago, Probus, 1991, ISBN 1557381453.
Burghardt, Galen, The Eurodollar Futures and Options Handbook,  New York, McGraw-Hill, 2003, ISBN 0071418555.
Gastineau, G.L., The Stock Options Manual, 3rd edition, New York, McGraw-Hill, 1988, ISBN 0070229813.
Gatheral, Jim, The Volatility Surface: A Practitioner's Guide, Hoboken, Ny Finance, 2006, 9780471792512.
Kolb, R.W., Financial Derivatives, Miami, Kolb Publishing, 1993, ISBN 1878975188.
Kolb, R.W., Understanding Futures Markets, 3rd edition, Miami, Kolb Publishing, 1991, ISBN 187897503X.
McMillan, L.G., Options as a Strategic Investment, 3rd edition, New York, New York Institute of Finance, 1993, ISBN 0136360025.
Natenberg, S., Option Volatility and Pricing: Advanced Trading Techniques, 2nd edition, Chicago, Probus, 1994, ISBN 155738486X.
Schwarz, E.W., Financial Futures: Fundamentals, Strategies and Applications, Homewood, Illinois, Irwin, 1986, ISBN 0256030057.
Siegel, D.R. and D.F. Siegel, The Futures Markets, Chicago, Probus, 1990, ISBN 1557385726.
Smith, Jr., C.W. and C.W. Smithson, The Handbook of Financial Engineering, New York, Harper & Row, 1990, ISBN 0887304486.
Risk, From Black-Scholes to Black Holes, London, Risk, 1993, ISBN 0 9516453 31.
Taleb, Nassim, Dynamic Hedging: Managing Vanilla and Exotic Options, New York, Wiley, 1997, ISBN-10 0471152803, ISBN-13  978-0471152804.
Tompkins, R.G., Options Analysis, Chicago, Probus, 1994, ISBN 1557388342.

More technical -
Ingersoll, J., Theory of Financial Decision Making, Totowa, N.J., Rowman & Littlefield, 1987, ISBN 0847673596.
Shimko, D., Finance in Continuous Time: A Primer, Miami, Kolb Publishing, 1992, ISBN 1878975072.
Wilmott, Paul, J. Dewynne and S. Howison, Option Pricing: Mathematical Models and Computation, Oxford, Oxford Financial Press, 1993,   ISBN 0952208202.